


Mutualism

by MythologyPastry



Category: Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magika | Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Arguing, F/F, Forgiveness, Grief/Mourning, Love, Magical Girls, No Lesbians Die, Wives, new york magical girls, who actually get to age
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-22
Updated: 2018-07-22
Packaged: 2019-06-14 08:01:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15384288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MythologyPastry/pseuds/MythologyPastry
Summary: Magical Girls who have made it to adulthood face the biggest struggle of their marriage after Nadine's younger sister forms a contract and becomes a witch, leading to Shelly to take things into her own hands and do what her wife cannot. Afterwords, they struggle to deal.





	Mutualism

"Let's just talk about this, please." She says quietly, fingering the opal hanging from her neck like a rosary.

  
Nadine shakes her head. She looks up from her place on the worn leather couch and tries to hide her raging anger at Shelly by focusing it all into her words. "You lied to me about Carlotta. You, you took her grief seed, and she died for it! We could have saved her, and you took away that from me."

  
Shelly lets go of her necklace, letting herself slowly slide down the wall onto the floor. Her fingers rub at the worn wooden floors encrusted in a light layer of dirt. How long have they ignored the state of their apartment while spending their nights hunting for witches? Before Carlotta, before she became a magical girl, they at least kept up appearances of having a somewhat normal life for her sake at least. "We're not saplings, you know. We've laid down our roots and have had enough time to understand this whole process. Magical girls die, and they become witches, and we're lucky that we've lived as long as we have." Doing this for a decade, it's become more a job than what Kyubey had sold them as girls.

  
The two of them look at each other, years of cooperation leading to a silent conversation. Finally, Nadine breaks their staring eye contest and joins Shelly on the floor, sitting across from her with a hand outstretched. Shelly blinks a few tears away, and she takes her hand wordlessly, rubbing the soft tips of her acrylics on the edge of her wife's palm. "Hey," she says.

  
"Hey," Nadine says, a smile growing on her face despite herself.

  
"I want our relationship to work, and I will do anything to help us go forward, together." Shelly sighs. "But, if you want me out of here, I get it."

  
"You can't leave. I don't know how to adult without you."

  
"But that's no basis for a relationship, even one between magical girls." And they return to silence with the truth, until Shelly brings their hands to her lips, kissing her wife with all the energy she has left.

  
Nadine giggles, pulling her hand away after a very loud mwauh. "You can't leave because I love you."

  
"Ah, now that's better," Shelly says. "Because I love you too."

**Author's Note:**

> I love writing in this universe.


End file.
